KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer

HARLINGEN — Toughness was the first word Harlingen head coach Manny Gomez used to describe the 2018 Cardinals. With a new season come high expectations for the Cardinals as they do every year.

Last season was an odd year to say the least, the Cards missed the post season for the first time since the 1999 season, and the first time Harlingen missed the postseason under Gomez, who is entering his 11th year.

Make no mistake; Big Red is motivated as ever to prove last year was an anomaly.

“We don’t live in the past, we don’t harbor any feelings from the past by any means,” Gomez said. “We learn from it, this group of kids right now, they have a whole different mindset and it was all based on the offseason, we learned and moved on from it.”

This year the Cards will look to either Damon Cantu or Jaime Galvan to lead the Cards under center. Last year Daniel Ramirez directed the offense and is now graduated.

Sticking with the offense, four starters return from last season, while eight starters on defense will be back.

Senior wide receiver Joe Reyna will be one key piece to the offense this season. Last season the speedy Reyna hauled in seven touchdowns on 28 receptions for 482 yards. Along with Reyna, Dalton Mann, Cantu and Galvan will also look to make plays through the air.

“Every day is an opportunity to get better,” Gomez said. “We didn’t have things go right defensively today, but hey it’s a chance to get better and learn from it. Sometime you learn more from a loss, early on we can’t be over confident, it’s important that we stay humble to a point where we grind every day.”

Historically the Cards are known for having a hard hitting defense. Expect the Cards to find that form once again.

Tristian Garcia and Cameron Anderson make their return to the defensive line while hard hitting linebacker Marcos San Miguel will look to anchor Big Reds defense. Justin Munivez and Jose Garcia will patrol the secondary providing the Cards with speed at the defensive back position.

“Anytime you have kids that are battled tested, it helps,” said Gomez. “With experience, comes confidence and when you have that you have kids that are confident and that allows them to play fast.”

Harlingen will begin their season August 31 at home against Sharyland Pioneer with the kickoff slated for 7:30 p.m.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

LA FERIA — Over the past few years, the La Feria Lionettes have proven to be one of the top volleyball programs in the Valley.

The Lionettes have won the District 32-4A title two out of the last three years and are the reigning league champs. This season, the team has eight returning from last year’s group.

“Along with the winning comes the pressure,” said La Feria head coach Rebea Fraga. “Fortunately for us, we have plenty of time to get ready for district and figure out the X’s and O’s, and get the girls some more playing time and get them in game-like shape.”

With the new school year, means the post-Myah Salas era begins. Salas provided an all-around game for the Lionettes and now this year Fraga will have the task of replacing Salas with different girls playing different positions.

“Myah played all around; this year I have girls that specialize in both the front and back row,” Fraga said. “It is going to allow some girls to have more playing opportunities and we will see how it goes. So far everything is going good. The kids are excited to be back out here on the court.”

While eight players are retuning, only two of them – Sierra Salinas and Karina Diaz – return with starting experience.

Salinas, like Salas, provides La Feria with an all-around game, while Diaz returns at the setter position.

“I missed the girls on the team; it’s great to be back,” Salinas said. “This year I have to step up and be a leader, and help guide the younger girls. I need to make sure no one feels left out. I worked on my vertical (leap) over the summer. Now I can get up there; that is something I improved on over the summer.”

In addition to Salinas and Diaz, Natalie Gonzales, Kaylen Chapa and Mary Winton will all have a part in this season’s title defense.

“I think we’re off to a good start to the season,” Diaz said. “We had a bit of a rough summer league, but now we’re back together for the real season, and everyone is coming along and I have a good feeling about this year. Ever since I’ve been here, we win so there is some added pressure to win, but we know how to go about it, and we try and go out there and win every day and take it one game at a time.”

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

LYFORD — The 2018 season will be an interesting one for the Lyford Lady Bulldogs volleyball program.

While a bulk of the team was lost to graduation this offseason, the Lady Dogs remain one of the top teams in the District 32-3A heading into the new campaign.

Last year the Lady Dogs went 6-2 in league play and finished in second place behind Santa Rosa. Despite falling in the area round to Goliad, Lyford has reached the playoffs each year under third-year head coach Lisa Lancaster.

“I saw the girls play over the summer (in summer league games) and they were upset because they didn’t win many games, but they knew the competition against bigger schools was going to make them better,” Lancaster said. “The idea is to prepare the kids for the playoffs; it’s a whole other level when we make the playoffs and I want the kids to be ready, and playing tough competition gets them ready for that.”

Lyford bid farewell to Hannah Perez, Ashley Rangel and Adriana Duran, who all played a vital role on last year’s team.

“The girls have experience playing with each other,” Lancaster said. “It’s just a matter of them getting used to playing at a quicker pace at the varsity level. We’re just in our first week so there is plenty of work to do, but I know we will get where we need to be.”

This year, Lyford will look to senior Sarah Martinez and junior Jerrica Rojas. The two are the only two returners from last year’s squad and both look to play a key role this coming fall.

“It was bittersweet coming out for our first few days of practice,” Martinez said. “I was a little nervous and it hit me already that this is my senior year, this is my last go-around. However, it is exciting to be back on the court.”

Junior Karla Medina will look to fill the libero position this season, but is open to filling in wherever the team needs her.

“I’m looking forward to playing this year. I play libero that is my main position, but I’m ready to get back on the court,” Medina said. “I recently had a baby, so it’s good to come back and be on the court. Everything went well and right now I’m working hard on getting back to where I need to be. I really liked how the first few days have gone. The coaching staff has done a great job and the girls are great to play with. It’s been a smooth transition.”

District 32-3A will also have a new look after the UIL’s realignment this past February. Brownsville IDEA Riverview, Vanguard Academy Pharr, Weslaco IDEA and Vanguard Alamo are the four new teams added to the district.

The Lady Bulldogs open the regular season on Tuesday with a home match against La Joya Juarez-Lincoln. They will then participate in the annual Donna Tournament, which begins Friday.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

HARLINGEN — Now is the time. That is the motto the Harlingen Lady Cardinal seniors are going by this season.

After losing a play-in game against Brownsville Hanna last season and narrowly missing the playoffs, the Lady Cards are motivated as ever to put a winning season together in 2018 and clinch the program’s first playoff berth since the 2014 season.

While District 32-6A did get cut by two teams with Weslaco and Weslaco East heading to District 31-6A via the UIL’s realignment this February, the six remaining teams are solid and there will be less room for error.

“Those four words (now is the time) is what will get us through (this season),” said Lady Cards head coach Joslynn Torres. “The team truly believes that this is their time and it’s do or die every game.”

Harlingen will have to replace libero Julissa Munivez and hitter Yazmine Martinez from last season, however the Lady Cards return six players, including four starters.

Seniors, Kirsten Kattan, Alina Prado, Desiree Sanchez and Taegan Dickey makeup of the core and all look to contribute this season.

“It has been a while since we were in the gym; we had a lot of girls come out and it was a good turn out,” Sanchez said. “I was more excited than I was nervous on this being my senior year. Coach Torres expects myself and Taegan to step up and be leaders this year, and that is something I look forward to. In the past we have had great leaders, so being able to fill in and lead is an honor.”

As for Dickey, the senior is making a position change from middle blocker to setter and outside hitter. Torres fully believes in Dickey’s move and saw the progress.

“I have seen her grow so much,” Torres said of Dickey. “From her knowledge of the game to the mental side of it, she has grown as a player. She will be a key player for us in the back row and as a front-row hitter.”

Dickey herself is also looking forward to her new role.

“I’m excited about the position change,” she said. “I have my coaches here with me to help guide me. Over the offseason it was tough because I had just a month to learn it and they had just a month to teach it to me.”

The Lady Cards open the regular season on Tuesday with a tri-match against Laredo United and host Sharyland Pioneer. They then will participate in the annual McAllen Tournament beginning Friday.

KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer

HARLINGEN — The Harlingen South Lady Hawks will have a clean slate in 2018. After a turbulent 2017, the Lady Hawks are ready to take the next step this season with a junior heavy squad. Along with some youthful swagger, South is in prime position to make some noise in 2018.

“We had the best summer ever, we had so many girls show up for strength and conditioning,” said South head coach Anissa Lucio. “The girls showed up and played well in the summer leagues, and I’m proud of them on what they did over the summer.”

Lucio, who is in her second year as head coach, has found her Lady Hawks ready to hit the ground running, and have a strong feel for the system in year two.

“We’re five steps ahead from where we were last year at the start of the season,” Lucio said. “We can focus more on certain drills and game like situations.”

The Lady Hawks have seven returning from last season, and all played a vital role while gaining experience against what was a brutal 32-6A district.

Last year the Lady Hawks went 4-10 in league play, and are setting their sights on the postseason for the first time since the 2011 season.

Junior setter Mya Aguirre is one key returning starter and is confident in the 2018 group.

“The experience helps us a lot, we have a young group of sophomores as well, and we all help each other,” Aguirre said. “Over the summer I worked on my strength that is something important, it helps when you’re on the court. I also worked on my serving and it improved. We have goals and we want to focus on district play first and then the playoffs.”

Fellow junior Mikela Mireles returns as one of the top hitters in the district and is poised for a bounce back year after tearing her ACL, MCL and Meniscus last fall.

“It’s exciting to be back on the court, it has been a long wait for me,” said Mireles. “I feel great and I’m glad to be back on the court playing.”

While the road to recovery was tough for Mireles who missed eight months of action, returned to the court over the summer and feels where she needs to be at the start of the season.

“Over the summer I was able to improve on how high I jump and my timing on the ball was another thing I needed to work on since coming back from the injury.”

KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer

RIO HONDO — The 2018 volleyball season has begun and the Rio Hondo Lady Bobcats look to hit the ground running under new leadership.

The Lady Cats tabbed former La Feria assistant volleyball coach Lizzette Esparza to steer the Rio Hondo ship. Esparza spent the last 10 years as an assistant volleyball coach.

Esparza is no stranger to District 32-4A or Rio Hondo. Her husband Brett Esparza is the current head softball coach and defensive coordinator for Rio Hondo, which made the move to Rio Hondo a lot smoother.

“Rio Hondo is like home to me,” Esparza said. “My brother coached here 12 years ago. It’s very exciting to come here and be able to coach. I finally came over here and joined them, it releases a lot of tension for sure, but now we can now pull for one community and work together.”

On the court, last year Rio Hondo clinched a playoff berth via a play in game against Progreso before bowing out to Sinton in the bi-district round. The Lady Cats have reached the postseason twice in the last three years.

“The kids were excited that we started in the weight room,” said Esparza. “It is something new for the kids. They got here this morning and were ready to work. We worked on different things this morning, but it was a great feeling and a good way to get things going.”

This year Rio Hondo will have some shoes to fill from last year’s group of seniors and will have five returners from last year’s bunch.

Senior middle blocker, Taylor Gomez returns to the Lady Cats and is a four year letterman, and will serve a key role in 2018.

“I’m excited to be back on the court, and it’s the first day so there is some rust, but I’m positive we will get to where we need to be,” Gomez said. “It hasn’t hit me yet, that it is my senior year, our goals are to win district and to make a run in the playoffs. I also want to play at the college level that is another goal I have set for myself this season.”

Sophomore hitter Kelsey Pizarro returns and will be a key offensive weapon for the Lady Cats in her second year.

“Over the summer I attended camps and worked on my hitting,” Pizarro said. “I feel like I improved and I’m looking to get better and help my team as much as I can. Right now I’m excited to be here, last year I was scared to play on the varsity, but now I feel confident and I’m ready for this year.”

This year’s motto is simple, “We are here to win,” Esparza said.

Those five words are what Esparza has been pushing and will continue to push this season.

“We need to have a winning attitude and keep the enthusiasm up,” said Esparza. “We need to have the mentality that we will show up and win a game, and we have girls with experience that have made the playoffs and that is something we can build on, they help set the foundation.”

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

RIO HONDO — On the eve of the start of the 2018 high school volleyball season, the Rio Hondo Lady Bobcats hosted a two-day camp for incoming seventh, eighth and ninth graders at the Rio Hondo High School gym.

The camp wrapped up Tuesday evening with more than 80 campers participating.

First-year head volleyball coach Lizzette Esparza hosted the camp along with a pair of familiar names in La Feria’s Myah Salas and Rio Hondo’s Bianca Cruz, who served as camp instructors.

“This is the first camp I host here in Rio Hondo,” Esparza said. “The idea is to get our junior high kids and incoming freshmen ready for their season. We have gone over different skills, from passing, hitting and serving; everything they need to know we want to prepare them.”

Over the last two days Esparza saw the progress with the campers. The seventh grade group had a strong camp along with the incoming freshmen also showed some promise.

“The seventh graders were surprising, they did really well and our incoming freshmen also did really well, it was a great two days,” said Esparza.

Cruz, who just graduated from Rio Hondo, played volleyball for the Lady Cats and will be heading to Prairie View A&M to play softball this coming school year. Cruz saw the camp as a way of giving back to her alma mater.

“It was a great pleasure to help out at the camp over the last two days,” Cruz said. “I want to thank the coaches for giving me the opportunity to teach the future Lady Cats on what I know about the game of volleyball, and I’m going to miss being around them.”

As for Salas, she will head to Central Methodist University to play basketball. She also enjoyed helping guide the younger girls.

“It was great to come out and help my former coach (Esparza) and help her build her program,” Salas said. “It was great to see all the young talent and it was amazing to see myself in some of the girls.”

KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer

With the 2017 softball season in the rear view mirror, earlier this week the Texas Sports Writers Association released its all-state list.

In Class 4A, Rio Hondo represented well with three Lady Cats making the list.

Seniors Bianca Cruz and April Adames, and freshman Abbie Torris were the three representatives, which is the most all-state representatives the program has had in its history.

“I’m proud of the girls for being recognized,” said Rio Hondo coach Brett Esparza. “They have worked extremely hard to be the best versions of themselves and continue to meet the level of expectations that we set in our program.”

Cruz wrapped up a brilliant career in a Lady Cats uniform. Cruz was named district offensive player of the year and was tabbed second team all-state outfield. She batted .538 with 17 doubles and 33 RBIs.

Adames, meanwhile, was named third team all-state at the first base position. She finished her senior season off with a .400 batting average and drove in 21 runs.

Highlighting the list was Torris, who busted onto the scene this season and proved to be one of the top sluggers in the district.

She was this year’s Valley Morning Star All-STAR Newcomer of the Year and was also District 32-4A’s top rookie. Her standout season was capped off by being named first-team outfield on the TSWA list.

Torris becomes the second Lady Cat to be named on the first team list. Last season Tianna Sandoval became the first Lady Cat to be named first team all-state.

“It’s unbelievable and such an honor to make the state list,” said Torris. “It makes me want to keep working hard and to get ready for next season.”

Torris finished her first season in a varsity uniform with some strong offensive numbers, swatting 41 RBIs and 25 doubles, and finished with a .640 average.

De La Fuente, Escamilla represent 32-6A :

Weslaco’s Audrey Escamilla and Harlingen South’s Kaitlynn De La Fuente were the only two players from District 32-6A to make the TSWA All-State list.

Escamilla was named to the second team at the catcher position. Escamilla batted an impressive .560, had 65 hits and 20 doubles this season.

De La Fuente, meanwhile, was named the Valley Morning Star All-STAR Pitcher of the Year and was named third team all-state as a pitcher. The senior dealt 133 innings and finished with a 23-4 record while striking out 144 batters.

KEVIN NARRO | Valley Morning Star

PALM VALLEY — The 38th annual South Texas Junior Golf Classic presented by Gillman Auto teed off early Saturday morning at Harlingen Country Club.

Defending champion Santiago Garcia of Brownsville checked in a solid first day and was the first-round leader as he shot a 72.

Garcia birdied his final hole of the day thanks to an impressive 35-foot putt. The final putt gave Garcia confidence heading into day two.

“I struggled a bit, but I turned it around,” Garcia said. “I have the lead so I can’t complain. I had a few bad shots, but I grinded through it and I felt I turned in a solid day.”

Garcia went a stretch of 13 holes without a birdie, something that he’s not used to.

“I was getting a little frustrated because I hadn’t had a birdie,” said Garcia. “I kept calm and stayed focus on each hole, and I finished strong and now I can look forward to tomorrow. I’m hoping to finish on top and it will also be my final day in this tournament.”

After day one, the top three in the boys 15- to 18-year-old division is a tight race. Right behind Garcia is La Feria’s Andy Cortez, who shot a 73. Meanwhile, recent Lyford High School graduate Brandon Garza sits two shots back with a 74 along with Alex Hernandez of Victoria.

Ethan Galvan of Edinburg shot a 76 to finish the day tied for fourth along with Paul Young IV of Laredo. Rounding out the top five is Peyton Vos of Weslaco, who fired a first-round 77, along with Nate Newman of Harlingen.

“I started strong, and started the day with a few solid birdies,” Cortez said. “I finished the front strong; I approached it shot by shot and I didn’t worry too much about scores or who else was out there, I just focused on my game. I felt comfortable today; it was what I expected it to be. As for tomorrow, I’ll continue to play my game and make my putts and stay focused.”

Garza, who is in his second year of competing in the event, is in a good position heading into the final day.

“I hit the ball well. I missed some putts and I felt I could have done better, but it was a good day,” he said. “I managed to finish in the top three. I’m familiar with the course as I have played here before and being able to play with some of the best (golfers) is a lot of fun. I felt I kept the ball in play and hit my spots, and I stuck with my game plan.”

In the girls 15-to 18-year old division, Mia Lerma of Mission took the first-round lead with an 81. Hanna Bullard of New Braunfels shot an 85 to finish in second while Fahtima Avila of Brownsville and Micaela Leandro of Harlingen shot an even 86 to finish tied for third. Madison Ozuna of Cedar Park rounded out the top five by firing an 87.

Day 1 leaderboard

Boys
-Santiago Garcia — 72
-Andy Cortez — 73
-Brandon Garza — 74
-Alex Hernandez — 74
-Paul Young IV — 76
-Ethan Galvan — 76
-Peyton Vos — 77
-Nate Newman — 77

Girls
-Mia Lerma — 81
-Hanna Bullard — 85
-Micaela Leandro — 86
-Fahtima Avila — 86
-Madison Ozuna — 87

KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer

HARLINGEN — The Harlingen 7on7 league wrapped up Thursday evening, and now the focus can shift towards August 6th, which marks the first official day of high school football in Texas.

10 teams all took part in the two-month season and got a feel for the upcoming season. San Benito was one of the top teams in the league.

The Hounds rolled through their schedule with a 10-2 record and finished as the league champs in division I. San Benito elected to pull out of the league with two games left due to strength and conditioning.

Rio Hondo got off to a slow start, but finished 9-3 overall and may have found some answers on offense. New starting QB Josiah Ortega showed improvement with this his receiving core and will look to continue that trend.

“In our first game we didn’t do so well but we improved over the summer,” said Senior running back Danny Vasquez. “We had a new quarterback and a few new guys, but we got better and came together. We got in sync, Josiah did a great job on offense, and we’re excited for the season.

“As a senior this is it for us, we want to go out there and give it our best.”

La Feria, like Rio Hondo, showed some offensive fire power with young gun slinger Dorian Hernandez. Hernandez is slated to be a junior this year and was in sync with his offense and is looking to take the next step.

“Over the summer we learned we can depend on each other,” Hernandez said. “We were able to see what each guy can bring to the table, and everyone had a role. We were able to see some opponents that we will see in the fall. We also showed we can compete with the bigger schools, and that makes us better. Now we can focus on the upcoming season and we’re expecting big things.”

Of the 10 teams, Raymondville was the only team to punch their ticket to the state 7on7 tournament in College Station. The Bearkats, like the Hounds, pulled out of the league after the state tournament, to focus on the upcoming season. Despite pulling out of the league, the Kats like the Hounds were two of the top teams over the summer.